AuthorTopic: Accepted at Touro... (Read 1199 times)

I just find out that I've been accepted to Touro. I have applied to 10 schools and still waiting for the other 9 to reply. MY GPA is a 3.1 and sadly my LSAT is a 150 (with KAPLAN). I could only apply to NY tri-state area law schools that offered part time evening programs so my choices were very limited. I'm a bit nervous about the other schools decisions, but here's my plan B. If I dont get accepted anywhere else and Touro is my only option, I will go to Touro for the 1st year, work really hard to finish in the top 15% and transfer to another school. I've heard that the school's ratings by law firms and judges are not very high, so since I want to work in NY, having a degree from Touro would not serve me will in the large firm world. Is it wise to go to Touro and transfer (only if this is my only option)? Any advice would be helpful.

Don't go into law school with the intent to transfer. Chances are very low you are going to be in the top 15%. Your 1L year is gonna have a brutal curve at a school such as Touro, and everyone is going to be gunning for the top 10-15%. At a school like Touro -- much like Cooley -- most go in with the intent to transfer, and not everyone is going to be able to. The curve forces a spread: so many people must get Cs, must fail, etc. Only the top 15% will be top 15%, and yet you are going to be fighting against everyone for this. No one at Touro is going to go in there being satisfied with being in the middle of the pack.

Furthermore, your first year of law school is going to be like nothing you have ever experienced before. It's a ton of work, and there is no way to know how well you are performing until you take your final exams. This is because your entire grade is based on your final. And then it takes about a month to get your grades back, so you are into your second semester by the time you know how you did in your first semester. Look at it this way: you take Contracts your fall semester. You have no quizzes, homework, or tests until December 15th, when you have your final exam. The only feedback you have received is from your fellow classmates and maybe an office hour with the professor. You take that final, wait a month, and then find out you got a B. You will never be in the top 15%, and lost your chances of transferring. That's how law school, especially the first year, works. Everyone wants to be at the top, and no one really knows what they are doing. Like a bunch of chickens running around with their heads cut off.

I would advise against going to Touro with the intent of transferring, and would stay far away from it unless you can get tuition covered by a scholarship. I went to a T2 state school and had a good scholly, so I came out with little debt. I took and passed the July bar, and I received a job offer just before Christmas (after sending out 200+ resumes). They started me at 47K/year. If I had serious loan payments, I would be screwed. That is the reality of this profession as it currently stands.

Do a simple Google search: many schools that are just like Touro are currently involved in a massive class action lawsuit. Although you are a 0L, you know what a class action suit is. They are fraudulently misrepresenting career statistics and starting salaries. There are very few jobs waiting for those who graduate from the top schools, let alone those who fall out of the T14. Unless you have connections, or the means to go solo (which you won't right out of law school unless you have prior experience), law school is a losing game right now.

You should only attend a school at which you would be happy finishing your JD. Transferring sounds easy in theory, but it's extremely difficult in practice. Obtaining top 15% is next to impossible. The odds are stacked against you. In fact, you have an 85% chance of finishing outside of the top 15%. Your competition isn't your run-of-the-mill undergraduate. Most everyone in law school are intelligent, motivated, and determined to do their best. That fact coupled with the 1L forced curve makes achieving your goal very difficult, indeed. Even if you meet your goals, there are a lot of school administrations that are reluctant to allow their "best and brightest" from transferring out. They can't stop you from transferring, of course, but many schools will make the process unnecessarily difficult and troublesome for you. A gentle nudge to dissuade you from your pursuits.

Again, only attend if you'd be happy finishing your degree at a particular school.

CK and B54, thank you both for not sugar coating anything. I will definitely take your views into consideration. At this point, I'm going to wait until I hear back from the other schools and go from there.